OG Beer-Battered Fried Fish Tacos

Not all fish tacos are created equal: you’ve got your Baja Fish Tacos (this page) that are battered and fried, you’ve got your basic healthy-ish pan-seared fish tacos (this page), and then you’ve got the variations we’ve played with. We’ve had fried fish tacos on our menu from the beginning and have served two versions: one, the OG, is beer-battered; the Baja Fish Tacos are tortilla chip–battered. They’re both incredible, so we’re going to share both of them with you.

Makes 8 tacos

¾ cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup cornstarch

1½ teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra to taste

¼ teaspoon baking powder

1 cup cold light Mexican beer, such as Modelo Especial

1 cup shredded red or green cabbage

1 cup Pico de Gallo (this page)

¼ cup Lime Crema (this page)

¼ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons pure olive oil

4 cups canola oil

1½ pounds fresh cod, cut into 2-inch pieces

8 6-inch flour or corn tortillas

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, paprika, salt, and baking powder and mix well. While lightly whisking, slowly pour in the beer. Do not overmix—you want the batter to be a little frothy. If you’re not going to fry your fish immediately, keep the batter cool by placing the bowl in a larger bowl filled with ice.

In another medium bowl, combine the cabbage, Pico de Gallo, Lime Crema, cilantro, and olive oil and mix well. Season to taste with salt and set aside.

In a large deep pot set over medium-high heat, heat the canola oil until it reaches 350°F on an instant-read thermometer. Working in batches, coat the fish in the beer batter and gently lower it into the hot oil, taking care not to crowd the pot. Fry the fish, turning the pieces often, until they are golden brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer them to a wire rack to drain. Let the oil return to 350°F before frying the next batch of fish.

Preheat the oven to 250°F.

Stack the tortillas, wrap them in aluminum foil, place them in the oven, and let them warm until they’re fragrant and pliable, about 15 minutes.

Remove the tortillas from the oven. Unwrap the stack and line up the tortillas, assembly-line-style, on your work surface. Place a few pieces of fish on each tortilla, and top them with the cabbage slaw.